


The closet is the safest place.

by orphan_account



Category: Homestuck
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-03
Updated: 2013-09-21
Packaged: 2017-12-22 07:18:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 12,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/910452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John tries to build up the courage to come out to his dad.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It's not like this is anything new. You ended your best broship with Dave close to eight months ago, and became full-on homo boyfriends. You talked it over a lot. A LOT. You weren't really sure if dudes were your thing, but it turns out they can be pretty okay. Dave is anyway. You love Dave a lot.

You don't have to be so sneaky about it when you're at his house. You actually don't have to be sneaky at all. His bro is really chill about you two being together, (and you're pretty sure he's at least a little bit gay himself) and he's even been really encouraging of Dave to be open about that kind of stuff. It's not what you expected from him at all, but you're glad Dave has such a good relationship with his bro.

You on the other hand... It's not like you and your dad don't get along it's just he's such an old conservative type. You know your dad says he'll love you no matter what, but... You're just not sure. It doesn't seem like something he would take easy. You keep stalling "coming out" to him, but you know you'll have to. You're sick of having to keep an akward distance between you and Dave while you play video games, or watch movies. ESPECIALLY while you watch movies. You're BOYFRIENDS, for christ's sake you're supposed to CUDDLE.

You also don't want to have to deal with the scare of your dad walking in on you two making out. It's almost happened a few times and you'd hate to see his face if he did. Sure, the embarassment you could handle, but being shoved out into the open like that without being prepared... You don't want to think about it.

Anyway, lately you have been trying to rack up the courage to tell your dad that you like dudes just as much as ladies if not just a little more. Dave has been a little supportive, but mostly he's just been, well, Dave. And that consists of ironic teasing that you're not supposed to take seriously but you do anyway because you can't just "tell him already." It's not that simple. He never had to deal with coming out to his bro. Bro walked in on you two macking it up on the futon and you stopped frozen, but Dave just kept on going while his brother grabbed some shit from the room and left. You felt a lot more comfortble with his bro after that.

Bottom line, you just really want to be out to your dad and know that he's comfortable and okay with you and still loves you as much as he says he does.

You still don't know how to go about that, but you're trying. You really are.


	2. Chapter 2

"Dave, just shut up and watch!" You nudge him a bit, holding him tight in your arms, the two of you wrapped snug in a blanket, with a bowl of popcorn. Your dad said he'd be home late tonight. That means that tonight was prime for some alone time, and by that you mean kissing and snuggling during a movie. The movie that Dave keeps RUDELY interrupting!

"I'd like to, but every time I look at the screen I spot some kind of horrible cinamatographic failure." You nudge him again and he laughs. You laugh too. You love it when he laughs, it always makes you happy. He used to be such a prick about not showing emotion, but realized that he was bad at it anyway, and gave up.

You nuzzle into his neck, and kiss it gently. That shuts him up. You're glad. You kiss his neck some more, but not too much more. You don't want things to get steamy... the both of you decided some time ago that Dave's house was the safe zone. You certainly aren't at Dave's house.

You quietly watch the movie together and smooch a little and feed each other popcorn and do stupid boyfriend stuff. Before the movie is over you feel Dave fall asleep on you. His breathing is slow, and rythmic, and soothing and...

You awake in the middle of the night. It's dark. Dave's head is tucked gently under your chin, as it should be, and your arms are both secured tightly around his midsection.

Something seems amiss...

It takes you a moment before you realize that the tv is off, and the popcorn bowl is nowhere to be found. You feel a chill run through your blood. Your dad came home. He saw you snuggled up to another boy like the homo you are and oh my god oh my

You try not to freak out. You try really hard. You don't want to wake Dave, and you REALLY don't want to wake your dad.

You can't beleive you let yourself fall asleep like that. Of course he fucking saw you he cleaned up after you and everything there is no hope for you now...

Prepared or not, you've GOT to talk to him now. You try to calm down and fall back asleep. There's nothing you can do but mentally prepare yourself.

You awaken again to the smell of pancakes, and the sound of small talk. You hear distinctly your dad's voice, and Dave's voice. You stay in place for a moment, to listen, but they're just chatting. Talking about you. Dave says something about how you're a little "soft in the middle" (psh, you're totally not!!!) and your dad lets out a proud laugh. Proud of himself for feeding you so much junk that, even working out, you still manage to carry a little baby fat. You think they're probably conspiring against you, so you pretent you just woke up, and walk into the kitchen, yawning and scratching your stomach as you walk through the doors.

"Good morning, sunshine. Nice of you to join us." Dave says in a sarcastically sweet tone. He's sitting on the counter by the sink while your dad is busily fixing breakfast at the stove. Everything seems comfortable and casual. You stop sweating about last night for a minute.

Breakfast goes smooth, and so does the rest of the morning. You get in the car with dave to drive him home, and you decide to bring it up again.

"Dude, I think my dad saw us sleeping together last night." Your voice is a little nervous, but why wouldn't it be?

Dave gives you a shrug and a simple "Why?" You really wish he would be a little more concerned in situations like this.

"Well, I woke up in the middle of the night last night, and the tv was off, and the popcorn was gone and-" Dave cuts you off mid-stream.

"No, no, no. John, I did all those things. As soon as you dozed off you started snoring, and then knocked the bowl out of my lap. It woke me up, so I figured the least I could do was clean it, and I was glad to turn off that damn tv. Your shitty movie was seeping into my dream." You look at him concernedly for a moment, while youre stopped at a light, he reassures you, "Look, your dad came in the door as I was sweeping the kernels off the floor. He gave me a nod and went right up to bed. He didn't see anything"

You feel a little better. You let out a breath you weren't really sure you were even holding. "Okay. I was scared I was gonna have to explain myself... Boy, I am not ready for that at all."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dave is 18 ad john is 17 in this by the way (it is like march idk its still winter and before johns birthday)

Even though Dave said your dad didn't see the two of you, you decide to avoid as much as you can for the rest of the day. The next time you see him is at dinner, a beautiful meal, as usual, and of course accompanied by and even more beauitful cake for dessert. You wonder if that man EVER tires of baking. You know the answer. The answer is no.

He doesn't say much while you eat. He asks you how it is, you say "Wonderful, as always." shoot him a smile that could kill, and he returns it with the most proud and fatherly look he can muster.

The rest of the night glides by without a hitch, and you're thankful to be back up in the sactuary of your room when it's time for you to sleep. You don't sleep, of course. You fuck around on the internet until 1 am THEN you go to sleep. You developed a pretty bad habit of staying up late on school nights after Dave teased you about your strict 10:00 pm bed time. Which was enforced by yourself becuase you'd rather look like a nerd (a well rested nerd!) than drag yourself around school for the first half of the day. You've adjusted pretty well, but Dave still thinks 1 am is pretty weak.

 

Going to bed at 1 am is the stupidest thing you've ever done. You grumble to yourself for the thousandth time as your alarm clock blares in your hardly awakened ears. You hate that thing you hate hate hate hate HATE it. You tell it that.

You drag your sorry ass out of bed, shower, shave, get dressed. All those normal morning things. You grab a quick bite to eat before you head out the door and get in your cold-ass fucking car to drive to Dave's. 

You stopped taking the bus a long time ago and started driving the both of you. The gas adds up after a while, but you think it's worth it. It's better than trudging through the snow to the bus stop to wait for a bus full of people that you don't like that is always late every single day without fail.

You text him when you're in front of his building, to let him know, and shortly after he walks out of the lobby, bundled up more than you've ever seen anyone bundled for this kind of cold, as per usual. "Texas wasn't this god damn cold all the time. Why the fuck don't we move there? I fucking miss Texas." He whines, as per usual.

You drive the both of you to school and the day goes by pretty fucking smooth and normal, like any other day. Your dad still completely in the dark about your painfully homosexual relationship with a boy. Still asking you about girls every now and then. You still like girls. They're just not as great as Dave.

 

You're on the way to home now, and Dave is warming his mittened hands by the air vents or your car. "Yo, I thought we were heading to your house today?" He looks up from thawing his frozen digits to notice that you turned the wrong fucking way.

"Oh? Yeah, sorry. I just thought it would be nice to hang out at your place." You give him a smile and a shrug. He gives you a raised brow. "I just don't really want the both of us to be at my house for a while." You decide to just tell him whats on your mind. You're boyfriends. You're supposed to. "After the panic of my dad almost cathing us... I just don't want to risk it again."

Dave looks at you for a moment and shrugs again. "Yeah, I guess." You know he understands and cares even though he pretends to not. He still does that from time to time.

You tackle the zillions of stairs leading up to Dave's penthouse, out of breath and panting. You're quite jealous at how Dave easily flies up them, taking some of them two at a time with his ridiculously long and slender legs. Those fine ass fucking beautiful legs. You do wish your dad would stop feeding you so much junk. It's like he's TRYING to keep that little extra weight on you. Work out all you want, you're just gonna get filled full of fattening sweets. Your arms mean nothing when you have such a soft gut. You swear your abs are under there... somewhere.

When the both of you reach the top, you dive right into video games on the futon. It's pretty routine. Dave kicks your ass almost every time, but sometimes you get the one-up on him. He is a sore loser and you think it's funny to watch him huff like a little kid.

After the games get boring you guys usually make out. You think you like that better than games. You like it especially when Dave is laying down, you completely on top of him, controlling him, pinning him in place. (like now) He whines when you tear yourself away from his ever-chapped lips and nip tenderrly at his jaw. You tease him. Oh boy, do you tease him. You give him the slightest friction in the hips and he whimpers like a lost dog. You give him teeth, and tongue, and lips and you shower his neck with soft, hard, and wet kisses.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to 'get it on' on the couch?" Dave's bro passes through the room. You jump back, your face probably as red as it gets. "This ain't the room for that, you boys behave out here." Your face gets redder. He swaggers out of the room, as silent as he entered.

Dave sits up with a pout. His cheeks almost as red as yours, and still panting somewhat audibly. He's got a pretty obvious boner.

You creep back up on him and kiss his ear. "Wanna take this behind closed doors?" You bite his earlobe for added sexy effect.

He lets out a strangled sound and nods his head. "Yeah that sounds pretty good." His voice is quiet and so painfully turned on.

You both scramble up to his room to finish what you started. You decide to sleep over. You didn't bring clothes, but you're pretty sure you wear the same size as Dave's bro.

You're pretty sure he won't mind if you borrow something.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is really short but the next two will make up for it i promise!!! !!
> 
> (also i went back and fixed some typos and shit in the previous chapters)

The pants are a little snug, and the flared bottoms of his jeans look a little silly on you, but they fit pretty well. You don't have the body of Adonis like Bro does, but you have enough muscle to make his polos almost as good as he does.

Dave thinks you look absolutely awful and wants you to change, but even Bro himself gives you an aprroving whistle and a wink as he passes you in the hallway that morning. (You're pretty sure he winked, anyway. It's hard to tell for sure with the ridiculous anime glasses.)

Jade and Rose greet the both of you at school the next morning, they agree that you look absolutely ridiculous, and not even Bro himself can pull off bell bottoms in this day and age. You all laugh and Rose says it looks just silly enough that you pull it off well. You don't know how to take that but you hope it's a compliment.

All of you have different lunches, execpt for you and Rose. You take the time to talk to her about your "Dad Situation". You explain the whole thing to her, how your dad almost caught you, and how you've been freaking out and really need her advice because you honestly have no idea how to go about telling your dad "I like dudes."

"I think the best way would be to just sit him down and have a real heart-to-heart. No fooling around. Just look him in the eye and tell him." You were afraid she'd say that. You're not exactly the best at face to face confrontation. You tell her that and she retorts with "Try leaving him a note. Maybe bake him a cake and scribble it on top." You know she's being sarcastic but sometimes it's a little hard to read her when it comes to jokes. Dave always laughs at them, but you never really know what you are and aren't supposed to laugh at.

"I wish I could. Maybe I should just get hammered and then talk to him." This is obviously a joke because you really don't like alcohol. Rose drinks from time to time, under her mother's care and supervision, but it's not really for you.

"Hammering does seem to be your strong point." She smiles and lets out a small giggle. "You really should tell him face to face, and sober, so he takes you seriously." She puts her hand on yours in a friendly effort to reach out to you both figuratively and literally. "I know you're worried about how he'll view you, but your father is the most devoted and loving I've ever seen. You should be as proud of him as he is of you."

The bell rings and it's back to class for the both of you.

Great. You guess you are going to have to go about this the old fashioned way. You're going to have to give it all the courage you've got, because next time you see him, you're going to tell him.


	5. Chapter 5

The drive to your house is tense. Dave keeps reassuring you that eveything is going to be fine, and your dad loves you, and he'll take it easy. You are more nervous than you've ever been in your entire life. You feel uneasy. You feel sick to your stomach. You want to turn around and spend the night at Dave's again and maybe just avoid your dad for the rest of forever.

When you get there, your dad is still at work, like you expected. You take the time to shower and change into your own clothes. You try to relax. You really really try. You aren't doing a good job. You feel like you're going to throw up, and you just want to forget about it.

"Dave, I tell you, he's not going to take it well... He's so old and conservative... He won't understand." You fidget with your hands and bite your lips. You're jittery and anxious.

"It'll be fine." He holds your hand gives it a small pat. "He'll probably just tell you that he loves you and he's proud and loves you anyway. That's what he does."

"Oh, god, I hope so." You feel better holding his hand, so you continue to do that.

You hear your dad's voice carry across the house as he shouts, "John! I'm home!" In the usual tone. He doesn't sound like he's in a bad mood, which is good. You need him to be ready for this.

"Dad! I need you to come in here." You shout back, pushing the nervousness in your voice down as far as you can. He notices though. You know he does.

He enters the room and gives you a strange look. "What's wrong, son?"

"Dad, why don't you sit down. I have something important to tell you." He gives you an even stranger look and sits down.

You take a deep breath and squeeze Dave's hand, while your dad gives you a bewildered, confused look.

This is it.

It's now or never.  
"Dad..." your voice shakes ever so slightly, "I have been meaning to tell you something for quite some time." You swallow hard and look him in the eyes, "Dave and I have been dating for around eight months or so. I've been waiting for the right time to tell you, but now is better than never... I am kinda bisexual. Not kinda. I am. I like boys. I, uh, still like girls but... I like boys, too."

You start to sweat and try reading his face for a reaction. You come up with nothing. He stares at you for a long time before he laughs and shakes his head.

"That's funny, John. You had me worried for a minute... I thought it you were going to tell me something serious." You start to let out a sigh of releif, but it's cut short when your father speaks again. "April Fool's Day isn't for another week and a half. Getting a good start on the pranking, I see." He winks and chuckles some more.

You stare at him now. "No, dad, I'm SERIOUS. Dave and I are boyfriends, and we love each other and, and..." You're frantic and you look back and forth between Dave and your dad, and you kiss Dave in front of him. Maybe that will convince him.

"Johnathan." His stern voice cuts across the tension in the air. "A joke is one thing, but that's a little extreme. Why don't you apologize to David?"

"But, Dad!"

"Apologize for violating young mister Strider's space." You can't believe it. He's denying it. This is about as bad as it could get.

You stand up, coming face to face with him. "I am not going to, because I don't NEED to. We're boyfriends and we kiss all the time and-!"

"ENOUGH." He gives you that look that lets you know you've done something wrong (even though you haven't.)

"Mister Egbert, please" Dave tries to come to your defense but your dad silences him with a wave of his hand.

"I raised no son of mine to be like... like him! What made you this way? Was it hanging around his brother and his disgusting home full of those THINGS?" Dave's eyes turn to steel and he stands up, too. You can tell he wants to say something, but has enough self control to let you handle this first.

"There is nothing wrong with Dave! OR his brother!" You raise your voice to your father. "Nothing made me this way, it's just how I am. They're kind and open-minded people, and they support me and love me how I am, like family should!"

His brows furrow even more and he practically growls at you. "Those boys aren't your family. I am, and they're putting sick ideas in your head! They're making you into somthing just as sinful as they are."

You feel your eyes burn with tears. How dare he talk about them like that. How dare he act like they're some kind of evil, or that they're hurting you...

You turn to Dave and nod your head towards the door. You're not staying in this house any longer. "I'm going out. Don't wait up for me." Dave follows behing you as your dad shouts at you not to leave. He threatens you with grounding, and loss of computer rights. You ignore him. You get in your car with Dave and you pull out of the driveway so fast that you scare yourself a little.

Dave looks concerend. You don't notice though, because you're too busy focusing on the road, fingers gripping the wheel with white knuckles.

"It'll be okay, man..." He says in a soft tone. And then you let it all out. You bawl like a baby and you have to pull off into a parking lot just so you can cry.

Dave puts his hand on your shoulder and pats you gently. He whispers kind words into your ear, telling you how your dad will see the light soon enough, and how he still loves you. You knew this would happen. God damn it you KNEW this would happen. You try to think about what just happened but all you can do is cry and hold Dave as he holds you. He offers to drive the two of you home, to his house. You nod yes, and crawl over the seats, switching places.

You calm down to a sniffle by the time you reach his home, and he walks slow with you up the stairs. His bro is on the couch, and raises an eyebrow at Dave in a silent "how did it go?" Dave shakes his head to return it with a "not good."

The two of you go up to Dave's room, and just sit. Dave says you should talk about it, because you'll feel better.

"Talk about what? How my dad openly insulted not only me, but you guys? You've been here for me every step of the way, even your brother has been nice and helped me come to terms with this part of myself. My dad is making me feel just as guilty about it as when we first started this." You let it all out and do your best not to cry again. "I knew he wouldn't understand and I knew he'd hate me..."

Dave slaps your cheek gently, and looks you stern in the face. "Your dad doesn't hate you. It's just a lot for him to take in right now, you said yourself he's an old conservative kind of dude. He'll come around eventually." He kisses you softly on the lips and hugs you tight.

You feel a little better just being this close to him. You really love him and having him right there with you every step of the way makes this a lot easier. You can't imagine going through this without him.  
Eventually, you decide to sleep. Dave doesn't tease you about going to bed early. He goes to sleep with you, snuggling into your chest, and holding you just as tight as you hold him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> some mega drama stuff happens  
> like i said this chapter was much longer than previous ones, and the next one will be equally as long if not longer


	6. Chapter 6

You awaken to an empty bed, at about 9:00.

  
Nine o'clock? You blink and rub your eyes before realizing that you are late as HELL to school, and start rushing to get ready, running top speed down the stairs.

Dave's bro stops you at the bottom of them. "Whoa there, cowboy. Where you goin' in such a hurry?"

"I'm late to school! Why didn't Dave wake me up!?" You're still buttoning up your pants, and your shirt is only half on you.

"Calm down, dude. Dave thought you should stay here and take a mental health day. He told me to tell you he'd get all your homework and help you out and shit." He shrugs.

"Mental health day?" Yesterday floods back to you and you start to feel a little woozy. It was really considerate of Dave to do that for you. A really sweet gesture... You could only imagine how you wouldn't be able to focus at school. And going without you means he took the bus and everything. Dave is such a good boyfriend.

"Why don't you go back to bed, kiddo. Get yourself some good rest." You nod and retreat up the stairs, laying down alone in Dave's bed. You think about yesterday, and turn on your side, nuzzling the pillows, and drinking in Dave's smell.

You had never rasied your voice at your father like that. Maybe shouted a little during stupid arguments, but never stood your ground and really yelled back at him.

You didn't deserve the treatment he gave you. Calling you sinful. Calling DAVE sinful. Your dad stop taking you to church a long time ago (and stopped going himself, for that matter), but you learned enough to know that there is nothing wrong with loving someone.

You think of all the times your dad said he was proud of you, and that he loved you. Practically every single day. All that came crashing down yesterday... Does he hate you? Does he really not care about you as much as he used to say?

He didn't even think you were serious at first. He didn't care what you think or feel or even try to understand he just rejected you right away...

You can't go back to sleep so you get up and decide to head over to your place. No. Your dad's place.

You tell Bro that you're gonna grab some things, like clothes and stuff, because you're gonna be staying for a while. He seems to be okay with it, so you head out the door.

You stop for breakfast on the way, and eat in the car. When you get there thank god your dad's car isn't in the driveway. You were pretty sure he'd be at work, but it makes you feel better knowing for SURE that you're not gonna have an uncomfortable run-in and end up in another argument.

You unlock the door, and go up to your room, stuffing as many articles of clothing into a dufflebag as you possibly can. You also grab some video games and movies, just to make sure you and Dave don't get bored.

You empty the money out of your little safe bank, (almost 50 dollars and some change, not bad) and stuff that in your jacket pocket. You put a few dollars in there every now and again in case of emergency. It took a lot of self control to not spend it on stupid stuff sometimes.

You're about to leave, but as you're locking the door, you look down at the key in your hand. You're not going to need this for a while, you think. You scrawl out a quick note, and leave it on the kitchen table with the key.

_"I'll be at Dave's for a while. Maybe a long while. Don't call me, I'll be fine._   
_-John."_

That should do it, you think, then head out the door, carting not only the dufflebag, but an extra travel backpack you ended up filling with things as well. You don't bother with the trunk, and just toss them into the back seat.

By the time you're rolling out it's about time for Dave to be getting out of school, so you text him to tell him you'll be picking him up. He texts you a short "thanks" and thats good enough for you.

You wait outside the school for him, rubbing your hands together by the vent for heat. Winter sure has been pushing it's luck. It's almost April, for christ's sake. You're so distracted by your thoughts that you didn't see Dave come up to the side of the car, and when he smacks the window and shouts it about makes you piss yourself.

You unlock the doors and grunt for him to get his ass in the car before you leave him behind.

"So how was today?" You ask him as you pull away from the school, and laugh internally for sounding like a mother.

"Eh. Pretty crappy. I grabbed your homework and shit for you, I figured we could work on it together." You nod in agreement, again thinking how sweet a gesture that is. He's such a math wiz, he usually gets his work done in class, believe it or not. You're glad when he helps you. You like spending time together and learning from him.

"Thanks, your bro told me." He nods now. "Hey, and thanks for today. I appretiate how much of a sweet caring guy you pretend not to be." You nudge his arm and you can see his face flush a bit (whether it be from the cold or from your compliment) and he smiles some.

"No big deal, man. You really needed it." He says and shrugs. He notices the bags in the back and asks you "What's up with those? You head home and grab some shit?"

You tell him yeah. "I just needed to get some clothes and stuff, and thought it would be best to do it when I know my dad isn't home. I got some of my games and movies, too." He lets out a groan. You made sure to grab all the movies he hates the most (and some he actually likes) and you plan to torture him with them.

"Geez, just what I need. More shitty movie dates. In MY house this time, no less." You know he actually enjoys when you watch movies together. An excuse to be close and snuggle under blankets and it not seem a lot gayer than it actually is.

You get back to his house, and get cracking on your homework. He's so much better at this than you, and it's amazing that he has such patience with you. When Rose helps you she usually gets frustrated and fills it out for you. Which doesn't really help you actually learn anything in the end.

Dave teaches you step by step, and sometimes more than once, if needed. He leans in close to you to show you what to do. Sometimes you like to pretend you don't get something just so he'll scoot closer and show you again. You'd never tell him that, though.

Eventually the two of you finish it up, and you pretty much fly through the other subjects on your own (with the exeption of math related science problems.)

The rest of the evening is filled with regualr stuff that you two do when you hang out. Video games, mindless tv, and making out. You take a shower together before you go to bed, and by that you mean you go to bed while Dave spends a little longer on the computer.

He wakes you up when he snuggles into bed with you, his cold feet brushing against yours making you shudder, but pull him close to keep him warm under the covers.

 

The next day you see Rose at lunch, and of course the first thing she brings up is your dad.

"I'm sorry how things went with your father. My advice didn't seem to be the best." You can tell she feels a little dissapointed in herself, but there wasn't really another way to go about it, she was right.

"Geez, did Dave tell everyone?" You grunt before reassuring her, "No, man. Don't worry about it. He would have reacted that way anyway. He'll get over it, though."

Rose nods a bit. "Just Jade and I, you know that. I'm sure he will come to his senses. If a little old fashioned, your father is a very sensible man."

"I know. I just wish he would have at least listened to me. He didn't even let me explain, then he started insulting Dave and I and..." You shake you head. "That's not how a father should act. He always talked about how he'd love me no matter what..."

"Sometimes it just takes people some time to realize that the people they love are worth more than something as trivial as sexuality. Your father will come around. I promise you that." She smiled at you and her words really did make you feel better. Rose was really good at that.

You don't know what you would do without Rose. She's always there to listen, even when you don't want to talk. She has a way of charming your problems out of you. A bit of a sneaky gal, but you love her like a sister.

You're a little sad to end your conversation when lunch is over, but the rest of the day you keep it in your mind. Things are going to be fine. Your dad will accept you and everything will be fine.

At home later that evening, while Dave was, again, walking you through your math homework, your cellphone started ringing furiously. You know that you specifically told your dad not to call in the note you left. You knew he would call anyway. You silence your phone and leave it at that while you finish your work.

When you look at it again, you have 3 voicemails. All from your dad. All of them him telling you to come home, none of them apologizing for his out of line actions or words. None of hem reassuring you that he still loves you. Just that he wanted you to come home. He even tried to coax you by saying he made your favorite for dinner. He didn't say what, though. Which leads you to beleive that he doesn't actually know what you like.

You sigh and delete them out of your phone. You're so angry and dissapointed with him. You wonder if he really will get over it and stop being kind of a jerk. At least you know you're always welcome in the Strider Home.


	7. Chapter 7

You adjust to life in the Strider residence rather quickly. With the dough that Dave's brother has rolling in, it's not much of a burden for them to have one more mouth to feed. Feed endless takeout and shitty pizza to. Your stomach can't handle it, so you decide to talk it over with them, and make a few changes. You tell them that you're going to start cooking, and doing grocery shopping.

They're pretty okay with that, seeing as how neither of them are any good at cooking and you, after all, learned from the best, so you're pretty set. You plan on feeding them pretty healthy stuff. You figure that even though the both of them are pretty healthy, especially Bro, (all he ever does is sew puppets and work out, sheesh.) it would definitely give them both a boost to have vegetables in their diets that don't come from stir-fry and pizza sauce.

 

Before you know it, weeks have gone by. Its nearly your birthday, and you haven't talked to your dad since you moved in with Dave. You consider inviting him out to dinner with Dave and Bro. You wanted to have a date, but Bro decided that as long as they were going out, he was going along. You're going to be 18, and that's a pretty big deal. You'd really hate for your dad to miss it, but... every time you go to call him you remember how he acted, and you get angry all over again.

You try to just forget about it. You're gonna have a great time this weekend, and you know it! The three of you are going to go to a nice dinner and have a good time and hang out and you're going to have cake and it will be great and you won't even think about your dad.

 

You make it through the rest of the week, your school friends all wishing you you a happy birthday this weekend. You even recieve a few gifts from some of your close friends. You thanked them all a lot for your loot and thanked Rose especially, who brought a small cake to lunch for you. You didn't know she could bake, and you thought it was really sweet of her.  


The next day Dave makes you breakfast. Vaugely heart-shaped pancakes, and burnt bacon. Dave has never cooked before, to your knowledge, and has certainly never cooked for you. You eat and tell him it was amazing and he says "Don't get used to it." You hug him and give little kisses all over his face and he giggles like a nerd and blushes and you tell him you love him a few times. He says he loves you too, but you slept in pretty late so you better start getting ready.

You shower and get dressed, taking your sweet old time. You and Dave dress up a little for the occasion. Nothing too fancy, but you're going out and you want to look good. Dave's bro wears the same thing he wears all the time, but with a nice jacket. It's more than you expected from him, so you'll take it.

Bro decides that since they're celebrating for you, that you're going to take his truck, and he'll drive the lot of you. You tell him that's really nice of him, and thank him. Dave sits between the two of you in the middle of the bench. With both you and Bro being a bit large you feel a little bad for dave being squished between the two of you, but you figure he's small enough that he must not be too uncomfortable.

"So how do you like being 18?" Bro says. It's not weird and awkward when bro talks to you like it used to be when you would visit. You're a regular member of the household now, and you talk to him almost as much as you talk to Dave.

You shrug a little and say "Not any different, really." Like you always say when people ask you how being older feels. "A little excited I guess. It's a big step towards adulthood." You punctuate your sentence with a smile and nod.

He laughs. "Being an adult ain't all it's cracked up to be. Trust me you'll get sick of it." He nudges Dave into you a little bit, so you put your arm around him.

"It ain't that big of a deal." Dave shrugs against you. You figure its because his bro gave him anything and everything he wanted anyway. He was pretty spoiled.

"Well, maybe not, but I'm excited anyway." You pat Dave's shoulder, and nod again.

When you arrive at the place you all tumble out of the car and into the building. Dave put the reservations under his name, since this dinner is "his gift to you" that you're pretty sure Bro is paying for. You get seated, and immeadiately Bro hops over to the bar. You roll your eyes, but hey, at least you and Dave are alone, now.

You order your meals, and chow the fuck down because man it's been so long since you actually had a good meal. Your own cooking isn't bad, but its not exactly as good as your dad's. You start to remember how he's missing out on this big momentous occasion, but you push that back and distract yourself with Dave.

"So, you pick what colleges you want to apply for?" You know that isn't exactly "birthday dinner" talk, but it's something you've been meaning to talk to him about.

He groans and sighs. "Yeah, a few. Most of them are pretty expensive, but I think I have the grades to get some kind of scholarship." Dave was having a tough time decideing between art and archeology. He firgured he should keep art a hobby, and go to school for something that he can actually be taught. He never believed in art thoery, saying things like "you just gotta do what comes to you" and "art is in the eye of the beholder." He's such a nerd sometimes.

"That's good!" You're not sure what you want to do yet, but you're sort of leaning towards English teacher. You think you're pretty good with kids, and you kind of excel in that subject. You figure you'll just take basic classes until you've really decided.

"So uh, hey..." Dave casually changes the subject in an extremely (not) smooth way. "Have you ever thought about our future? Like maybe us, I dunno, getting married?" You stare at him a little bit.

You haven't really. Then again you've never really been one who looks ahead. You're thinking about it now. You think that would be nice. "I haven't given it much thought, really... But yeah, I guess that would be awesome." You shrug. "After all, who gets to marry their best bro, right?" He relaxes a little and you didn't realize he was so tense until he does so. "Spending the rest of my life with you might just be the best thing." You smile and put a hand over his.

Your special moment is interrupted when the staff brings over a cake for you and starts singing you a special little birthday song. You laugh and mile the whole time like a dork. Bro decides to com back over to join you for cake.

He and Dave kind of give each other looks, and you know they're having one of their weird silent conversations that they have sometimes. After a minute of you shoving cake in your face Dave gives him a nod and stands up.

"John." He starts, his voice cracks from nervousness, "Uh, John Egbert. We have been dating for just under nine months. And though thats not very long, we have known each other since grade school." He puts a hand in his pocket and fidgets.

"I love you. You have been my best friend through everything life has thrown at me. And I have been there for you. I want you to keep being there for me... For the rest of my life." He gets on one knee and you feel yourself starting to choke up.

"John Egbert... Will you marry me?" He pulls a little box out of his pocket, and opens it in front of you. Inside is a silver band with small blue and red stones nestled together.

You start to cry. The floodgates have opened and here come the tears. You hug him. Tightly. You pick him up and spin him around and tell him "Yes, oh my god, how could I say anything but yes!"

You accidentally make a scene. You don't care. Bro starts to applaud you two, and the next thing you know it seems like the whole restaurant is clapping and there are a lot of "awwws" and a few people shout "FAGS" but you're so happy that you don't hear any of it.

You're so wrapped up in Dave and how much you love him and how much of a giant romantic sap he is. You never saw that coming but you're glad about it you're so glad and you just keep sniffling and your glasses fog up and you all decide to leave before you make an even bigger scene.

You and Dave go out ahead to the truck while Bro pays. Once you're outside you kiss him. You kiss him so much, and tell him you love him over and over. You never want to let him go and the realization that you don't have to because you'll be together forever hits you and you start crying again and you feel really stupid but you don't care because you know Dave doesn't.

Bro follows you out and you all pile in the car again. This time Dave is practically in your lap, and you just hug and coo swet things to each other for the entire ride. You get home and you both go straight up to his room and kick off your shoes. He flops down on his bed and sighs a loud, happy sigh.

"I can't beleive you said yes..." He smiles up at you, now sans shades. "Not that I thought you'd say no, but it just felt great for you to say yes. I mean, we haven't been dating for even a year, but we've been best friends for over ten years. I think we'll get along just fine as a married couple. Bro teases us for acting like one all the time, so I thought, you know, why the fuck not just make it official?" He sits up and shrugs, "I love you, John. I really do and I really want to spend the rest of my life with you. We've spent most of it together already, so this will be just like that, except with kissing and sex and stuff."

You laugh a little and sit next to him. "The smooching and love-making does make the offer much more enticing." You kiss him and he kisses back and before you know it you're tangled together in his bed. You run your hands up his sides and he shudders, letting out a beautiful sigh.

"I love you too, Dave. I'm glad that you want to spend your life with me." You kiss him again and then clothes start to come off. You spend the rest of your birthday in wonderful love-filled euphoric bliss. Dave has made this birthday the best you have ever had. You love him so much.


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning you wake up late. Around noon. You shuffle out of bed and the first thing you do is brush your teeth. You have some of the most awful morning breath you've ever had for certain reasons that took place the night before.

  
You smile while you think about it. You and Dave are engaged. You decide to go about your regular morning routine since you're already in the bathroom. When you're all washed up and clean shaven you go back to Dave's room.

  
He's still asleep, so you decide to be quiet. You check your phone and notice you missed a call last night. You were so busy it's no wonder you didn't notice it then. You listen to the voicemail, and it's your dad.

"Happy birthday, John. I love you so much."

There's something in his voice that you can't exactly place.

"You're truly a man, now..."

He sniffles a little and you realize he's crying. You suddenly feel like shit.

"I'm so proud of you, son. You've become a great young man. A greater man than me. I'm sorry, John."

You feel yourself starting to cry again. You thought you were all cried out after yesterday.

"You probably hate me... But I just want you to know..."

You muffle your sobs in your hand. You can't remember ever hearing your dad sound like this.

"I love you and I am proud of you as you are. I'm sorry for how I acted. I was out of line and my actions were uncalled for. I am stuck in this old fashioned way of viewing things. I was so worried about myself that I didn't think about you. I didn't think about David. You really must care about each other a lot and I'm sorry I tried to stand in the way of that."

You feel so relieved to hear these words. You want to take back all the mean things you said about him.

"If you want, son, I still plan on making an Easter dinner. Please, stop by. You and David, and his Brother. I want to make this up to you. I was cruel and terrible and I'll do anything to make you love me again."

You hear Dave wake up, but don't bother to look. He sees you sitting on the floor by the phone charger. When he notices you're crying he gets out of bed and comes to your side, asking what's up.

"It was foolish of me to take this long to realize that love is a beautiful thing. It doesn't matter what gender you are." He makes his final remark before hanging up. "I love you, and I'm proud of you. Hopefully, I will see you soon."

You tell Dave everything he told you, and you're so happy that he's okay with you and loves you and is proud of you that you just kind of sit there on the floor with Dave for a while.

Easter is in two weeks. You don't know if you should respond to your dad, or surprise him. You decide to surprise him, and tell him the news then.

 

At school you and Dave keep your engagement kind of hush-hush. You decide to even keep it away from Rose and Jade, as much as it pains you not to brag. You also don't want Rose to lecture you on making this desicion, considering the brevity of your relationship thus far. You're confident that you and Dave will still be a thing when you're both old and gross.

Also Rose and her mom always show up at your dad's holiday get-togethers. So they'll surely be there on Easter, when you plan to announce it to them all. Jade will be there, too. She is your cousin, of course.

Whenever Rose asks you about your dad you brush it off. You continue to, even though you consider the two of you made up. She says that her mom called once and gave him quite the ear-full about being a good father and loving his child. You think thats probably what sent him over the edge to finally accept you.

 

You find yourself a little eager for Easter to roll around. You talked it over with Dave and his Bro and, though they may not be the most religious people, they agreed to visit your father for dinner and to mingle like a family should. After all, you are officially family now.

The week an a half of school between your birthday and Easter goes by quickly. On Saturday You pack all of yours and Dave's clothes and toiletries, and hurry Bro to pack his. (You end up doing it for him, too.) The three of you are going to stay there Saturday night to be there Easter morning. Rose and her mother, as well as Jade, will show up later in the afternoon.

You didn't realize how much you missed your dad before, so you're pretty damn excited. When you all pile into your car, Dave in the passenger seat and Bro sprawled out in the back, you turn on some quality music that for some reason both of the Strider boys have a problem with. You tell them that they wouldn't know good music if it hit them in the face, and they both scoff before the three of you compromise on a station.

The car ride isn't very long, and you're glad, because by the time you get there you're practically aching to see your dad. You tell Dave and his bro to hush while you knock on the door.

Your dad opens the door slowly at first, obviously not expecting anyone, and when he sees you his eyes ligh up and he throws the door open. "Oh, John!" He hugs you tight and you hug him back with an equally strong and manly grip. "You didn't tell me you were coming, I missed you!" He herds the three of you inside and sits you down on the couch.

"I know, I wanted it to be a surprise. It's okay if I brough them along, right?" You sit down next to Dave. You can't stop smiling and you feel like a huge dork, but you don't really care. "I missed you too, dad."

He sits down in his chair and looks at his twiddling thumbs. "I'm sorry about everything, John. I didn't mean to make you, or David and Mister Strider, feel unwelcome. I love you and I'm proud of you. No matter what." He puncuates with a strong nod and looks up at you.

"Aw, gee, Dad. It's all right. I know you were just kind of upset in the moment, and I didn't exactly make it easy for you." You shrug and your smile fades a bit. You kinda don't want to talk about this. "Let's just forget it and move on."

You dad nods in agreement, and Dave and Bro sit in awkward silence. Probably having another weird mind conversation.

"Oh!" Your dad stands up and reaches a hand out to Bro, who in turn shakes it. "How rude of me. It's nice to see you Mr. Strider. Why don't I show you to the guest bedroom?" He goes off up the stairs while Bro follows with his luggage.

"So far so good, huh Dave?" You put an arm around his shoulders and kiss his cheek.

"Yeah, I guess. I'm glad he apologized to you." He kisses your cheek back and then mumbles "He had no reason to treat you the way he did."

You nudge him and sigh. "Come on, Dave. You know he's not a bad guy. He was just a little dissapointed, I guess. I expected that of him. Don't hold a grudge, bro. Not cool."

He shrugs a little and smiles, "Well, aren't I supposed to get along bad with the in-laws? That's how it works, right?"

You chuckle a little and hush him. "Shh. That's gonna be a surrprise for tomorrow."

Bro and your father come into the room again and you spend the rest of the evening catching up, and having nice family bonding time. Your dad makes a small dinner for you, as he was not expecting guests yet, he didn't prepare anything especially nice. Tomorrow's dinner will be big, so none of you complain.

Dave and you decide to go to bed a little early, and Your dad and Dave's Bro sit up and talk a little more.

The two of you tuck into your bed just fine, but it's not quite as roomy as you remember. You're spoiled sharing Dave's nice big bed. Yours is not as large, but you both fit.

You spout pointless, silly chatter as you get tired and eventually fall asleep. You tell Dave about all the great things your dad is going to cook tomorrow, and about how you're all going to have a great time.  
Of course he knows, since he's been to your house at easter for the past ten years, and its not like it really matters, either, because he's asleep long before you.


	9. Chapter 9

You wake up at around 10, which is a little early for you on a Sunday, but you went to bed early for a reason. You gently shake Dave and blow in his ear to wake him up. He swats you away so you bite his ear and he grunts and shoves you but he's awake so that's a technical victory for you.

"Get up, you lazy ass." You shove him back as you get up out of of bed. You deicde to throw on some sweat pants since no one's going to be over for a while. You also decide not to bother with a shirt for now.

Dave gets up after you harass him a little more and tell him your dad is making breakfast. He doesn't take much time to dress, either, throwing on the rattiest pair of old pajama pants that he's probably has since he was 13 and one of your shirts.

You both go downstairs and, as you assumed, your father was busy in the kitchen making a very lovely breakfast. Bro was watching some little kid cartoon about the Easter Bunny on the tv in your livingroom half-asleep. You guess your dad probably woke him up early to help with breakfast or something.

You dad walks into the livingroom and stands in front of you. "Okay boys, Breakfast is ready." He claps his hands and rubs them together. He's all dressed up nice and ready for the day. He's still got his apron on from cooking, which is pristine as ever. (You can't recall your dad ever actually getting a mess on himself or the apron your whole life.)

Dave and you stand up and Start to walk to the kitchen, but your dad stops you. "Oh, One thing, first." He smiles that patented Egbert Prankster smile and you groan out loud. "I almost forgot about the egg hunt."

You groan again louder. "Dad I'm an adult now, come on." You whine very much a like a child.

"Adult or not, It's tradition." He hands you and Dave both little baskets and Dave is giving you a pretty harsh glare right now but you just shrug at him. "I've hidden six eggs for each of you. Dave's are red, and John's are green. Happy hunting." He lets out an almost nefarious chuckle and sits next to Bro on the couch, who snickers at Dave. "You can have breakfast once you find your eggs, so get hopping."

You can't fucking beleive your dad is making you do this. Every year he hides them in more ridiculous and hard to get to places. Sometimes you wonder how he even GOT the eggs in the places he did. After a few years of forgetting where he hid them and finding them weeks later sometimes, he started writing down the locations of all of the eggs. Usually you have to find a whole dozen by yourself. You're glad you have Dave to help.

You start by combing the entire living room. You look behind, under, and on top of, and inside of everything. You find one egg and Dave finds two. You figure he went a little easy on Dave.

You then make your way to the kitchen and scour all the cupboards. You open every door and dig through the pantry, and even take a peek inside the oven and the fridge. You find two eggs and Dave finds one. You both have three. 

You sift through the rest of the house. Your dad's study, the bathroom, YOUR room. Literally no room is safe from hiding eggs. Except your dad's room. He never puts them in there. You check in shoes, and in lamps, and windowsills, and every nook, cranny, and corner of the house. You find all of your eggs and wait patiently on the couch as Dave tries to find his lat one. You're pretty hungry at this point so you tell him to hurry up, but you're not allowed to help him look so you have to suffer.

Your dad can be so cruel at times.

After about ten minutes of searching for his last egg by himself he kind of gives up. "How is this even fair? How come John was able to find all his?" He grumbles "We looked in every part of this house and there is literally nowhere you could have his the stupid egg without us knowing." He pouts and you have to stifle laughter because Bro and your dad clued you in on the final egg's location while he was in another room.

"This isn't funny, John! This is torture you guys are assholes." Your dad excuses the slip because holy shit this is just too funny.

Dave lays down on the floor in utter defeat and lets out the most agonizing yell you've ever heard. "How it that even fair? That's against the rules or something, I'm gonna call the referee because that is some serious fowl." He stares up at the egg that was taped to your ceiling and your dad cackles as his Prankster's Gambit goes through the roof.

Dave has a tendency to look at the ground and shuffle his feet, so there was almost no way he'd spot it on his own. You figure that was Bro's idea. You have to laugh more because even on his tip-toes he's not tall enough to get it down. You get up and help him.

Eventually you all sit down to a very nice breakfast, and you thank your dad and tell him you missed his cooking. Which is very true. The only person in the household that can cook is Bro, and his menu is limited to instant "just add water" pancakes, and spaghettios. Having eggs and bacon and toast with jam is like a blessing. You can't believe you've been living on trash, you missed real food so much.

You can't wait for dinner, and can't wait for Rose and Jade to come over. You really can't wait to give them the big news at dinner. You're so excited you can barely stand it. You heaven't been wearing the ring because you've wanted to keep it a secret until now. You'll be so happy and relieved when you can wear it every day. Oh boy you can't wait to see their faces.

After breakfast you and Dave go upstairs and shower together. (You love washing Dave's hair for him. hehe) Then you both get dressed in some relatively nice clothes. Nothing too special since it's just family, but nice since it's a holiday.

Rose and her mother show up first. Your father greets them at the door and goes into the kitchen with Rose's mom. They have a bit of catching up to do, and she usually helps with cooking big meals on the holidays.

You sit on the couch between Rose and Dave and the three of you chat about mundane things. Rose and Dave chat a little more, while you just kind of listen. They get each other in ways that you're not sure you'll ever understand. Thay have a weird sibling-like bond. They haven't gotten to talk as much in person as you have with either of them. Living with Dave, he's basically been at your side whenever you're not in class, and seeing Rose at lunch every day means you're pretty much up to speed with the both of them.

You hear the doorbell and you can only assume it's Jade. You leave the two chatter-boxes to themselves and open the door to find your wily cousin struggling to control her dog and not drop a plate of cookies. You take the plate from her and step aside so she and her humongous dog can enter. He's a really weird dog. He's blind, and has weird, white, filmed-over eyes. You think they're freaky, but Jade says they're just cataracts.  
He hops up into your dad's easy chair and curls up and you and Jade squeeze onto the couch with Dave and Rose. It was a lot easier for the four of you to fit when you were all younger. You all have fun and joke around as if you're all 13 again. You can't believe all of you are adults now. All about to jump head first into the "real world" as soon as this school year is over.

You try not to think about the impending reality in front of you and have fun. You recap the hilarious egg shenanigans from this morning and the Girls think it's just as funny ans you did. Dave tell the three of you to shut up and whines about your dad's egg system being "unfair and unjust."

Around three-thrity dinner is ready. It's a little early for dinner, but again, its a holiday. You eat and then you sit around and then you eat some more, and so on. You're eager as ever to make your announcement. You wait for everyone to get seated at the table and comfortable. Everyone compliments your dad on the amazing meal, and once everyone has what they want and starts eating you stand up.

"Guys?" You clear your throat andstand up straight. "I have some very important news to share with you all." You start sweating a little, gee you didn't think you'd be this nervous. You look at Dave and he flashes you a subtle thumbs up.

"Spit it out already, kiddo." Rose's mother encourages you. Okay you have to tell them. Finish what you started, John.

"Well, as all of us here know, Dave and I have been boyfriends for quite a bit of time now, And, uh, well..." You adjust the collar of your shirt and swallow hard. "On my birthday Dave gave me the best gift he could have given to me. Himself. Forever. We're engaged."

You smile and Dave smiles a little, but no one else does. Oh no. You're worried you made a mistake. Maybe you should have kept it secret a little longer.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry i was gone for so long!!! school started and i have been swamped with work. being a senior is not fun.

"John..." Your dad says in an easy tone. "Don't you think it's a bit soon for that?" He gives a short shrug and fiddles with his fingers. You knew it would be a little tough for him to swallow.

  
"Don't worry, Dad. Dave and I have been dating almost nine months. Not to mention we've been best bros for years! I think we can handle being married." You shrug back and look around the room.

"Oh, sweetie. Being pals for a while is a lot different than being in a relationship for the rest of your life." Rose's mom says, "Don't you guys want to test the waters a little more to make SURE this is what you want?"

"Ms. Lalonde, Don't worry. We're not married yet. If anything goes wrong we don't have to get married." Dave interjects, "Besides, we're already living together and stuff. We'll be fine. None of you need to worry."

"Yeah, I mean, if anything could go wrong, don't you think it would have by now?" You point out.

"One month is hardly comparable to the rest of your life. What about when you're out on your own? Do you think you can handle the stress of living together alone, and paying for bills, and-"

"Dad, come on. We'll be fine. I love Dave, and he loves me... I know it's gonna work out fine. Trust me. Please."

Ms. Lalonde chews at her lip, "Well. I guess if you boys are so sure then we should be too. I wish the best of luck to you both!" She smiles and raises her glass before tipping it back and downing it's contents.

Everyone else follows suit. The rest of dinner goes along just fine. Rose and Jade congratulate you, and ask why you were holding out on them. You tell them you wanted it to be a surprise. Your dad is really kind about it, though you can see in his face he's not really sure. You think he probably expected you to "grow out of this phase" but you're glad he accepts you nonetheless.

After dinner you all sit around and talk, and bond like a family. For as long as you can remember this has been your family. Rose and Jade like sisters to you, Ms. Lalonde and Bro like an uncle and an aunt. Dave was your best pal. Now he's a little more than that. The sheer amount of love in the room between all of you is great and you sit close to Dave on the couch, holding his hand.

You've never felt so happy with your family and you're so happy that each and every one of them accepts you and loves you no matter what.

You're sad to see everyone leave. Jade has to go first, she lives almost all the way on the opposite side of town. The Rose and her mom leave. Then its just you and Dave and Bro and your dad.

You all sit around and talk a little longer. You Dad goes into the kitchen, presumably to do dishes and clean up, and you tell Dave and Bro to hold down the fort while you go help him. You haven't gotten any one-on-one time with him yet, anyway.

When you walk in the kitchen your dad is busy at the sink. You get out a dish towel and start drying them off and putting them away, making room in the rack.

"So. Engaged, huh?" He smiles at you a little but you can tell it's forced. He still doesn't fully approve of you and Dave.

"Yeah. I'm really happy about it. Dave is really great." You smile genuinely, fondly recalling the night in your mind.

"Married life is tough. I hope you're prepared to make some changes." He looks at you a little concerned.

"Dad, please. We're not going to be married for quite some time. It's not that much is going to change. I'm never going to get tired of Dave, and he won't get bored with me. We know each other well enough to handle each other when we're at our worst, even without the relationship."

"I just want to make sure you know what you're getting into. Married means forever."

You sigh heavy and set down the towl and the dish you were wiping off. "Dad. Have some faith in me, will you. I feel like you're trying to guilt me out of it. I know you still don't fully accept me as I am, but I'm not going to change. You have to learn to just love me how I am..."

He shuts off the sink and hugs you.

"John. I do love you. And I am proud of you. I'm just and old man, don't let what I think stand in they way of your love. You and Dave may not be what I expected, but I'm glad you could find that in the person who's closest to you."

You start to tear up a little. Man, you sure cry a lot. You can't help but be emotional at times like this, though. You hug him back tightly and sniffle a bit.

"Thank you. I know you love me, and I love you too. I just don't want to be a dissapointment to you..." You wipe your nose on your sleeve and you feel like a child.

"You will never be a dissapontment to me, John. You are my son. You are the most important thing in the world to me. I could never be more proud of you." He pats your back and smiles, his old eyes crinkling with sincerity.

"Thanks..." You nod and wipe your eyes. "I know what I'm getting into. I think we're ready. I mean, we're only engaged for pete's sake. It's not like we ran off and got married right away."

"I know. I'm just concered. I want what's best for you." He gives you a firm pat on the shoulder and guides you back to the living room.

Upon enetering you find Dave and his bro wrestling on the couch over the remote. "Sheesh, you guys can be so childish sometimes." You shake your head and sigh laughing. You take it from both of them and hand it to your dad. "Come on, Dave. It's getting late. We should head to bed." You yawn a rather fake and exaggerated yawn.

He nods and gets up and follows you up the stairs, making an ugly gesture at his bro as he leaves the room.

You shut and lock your bedroom door behind you and lay down on your bed. A smile creeps on your lips as you fondly regard the holiday's events. What a great day.

Dave slithers up onto your chest and snuggle close to you. "Have fun today?" He pats your chest and smiles back at you.

  
"Yeah. I was a little worried about dinner but I think that went really smoothly, eh?" You say as you run your fingers through his hair.

"Yeah, it was pretty okay." You know that's his way of saying it was a good day for him, too. You're really glad about that. You love him and his happiness is always the first thing on your mind.

You pull him closer to you and kiss his lips. Gosh you sure love him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am wrapping this up in the next chapter or two the next one will probably be the last


	11. Chapter 11

You continue to love him through the next month of school. Dave, Rose, Jade, and yourself decide to have one big grad party together at your house. A bunch of school friends show up and its pretty cool. Dave's bro got him a car after years of him begging. 

Dave wants to move back to Texas to go to one of the big city colleges there. He definitely has the grades to get in them, but you don't know how you feel about moving so far away. It would still be the three of you living together, but your dad and Rose or Jade wouldn't be just across town anymore.

You have a short while to decide this though. You guys want to relax and enjoy your first summer as adults in the "real world." You do this by acting no different than you normally do.

The two of you decide that you'll get officially married once you get settled down together. Getting ready for college and possibly moving across the country is a big step and a lot of stress and you don't need to throw a wedding into the middle of all that.

You can't say you're not excited though. You really can't wait to get married. You love Dave. You love your family. You're just really glad to have them all. You're really glad they they love you and are there for you

You're really glad they accept you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> really short chapter wow  
> just tieng all the loose ends  
> wow there was definitely a better way to end this sorry


End file.
